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Can The New Galaxy Note 8.0 Make You Forget The iPad Mini? Samsung Hopes So

Samsung has introduced its own tablet to rival the Apple’s iPad Mini, the Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet. It will only be available in a Wi-Fi version and sell for $400, reports the LA Times. Also, the model comes with 16 gigabytes of storage.

Looking at the details, it has a 5-megapixel rear camera and 1.3-megapixel front camera and comes with Samsung’s S Pen stylus.

According to eGadget.com, overseas, the device doubles as a phone. But, here in the US, it’s just a tablet that comes with an S Pen. The site says all isn’t new with this version. “Samsung’s borrowed elements from previous products, including the Note 10.1’s 1,280 x 800 TFT display (albeit with a higher pixel density of 189 ppi).” It also adds in elements Samsung phones, too, with chrome accents.

But the Galaxy Note 8.0 doesn’t get all rave reviews from eGadget. The site says of the design, “It’s inoffensive, unappealing and wholly forgettable — which might even be the point.” The camera gets so-so reviews. “The Note 8.0’s camera software falls short of the polish and comprehensiveness of, say, the Galaxy S 4, but it’s not entirely lacking, either,” reports eGadget. It does get higher marks for the flexibility of the software—and beyond. “All software aside, perhaps the greatest innovation ushered in with the Note 8.0 is the ability to tap the capacitive buttons with the S Pen,” writes the website.

Slashgear also expresses some reservations about the camera’s capabilities, but heaps on the praise for the S Pen, interesting at a time when everything digital is being done with a swipe.

To answer our headline question, Mashable says the Note’s got nothin’ on the iPad. But, if size is what matters, maybe you’d be interested in the Galaxy Mega? It’s going to be available in Europe in May. It has a 6.3-inch screen and will surely get you noticed.

Bottom line on the Galaxy Note 8.0, the $399 device could be a good investment. EGadget sums up: “All told, the US Note 8.0 is a solid product. In fact, it’s quite nearly the Swiss Army knife of Android tablets.”